Room 311
by iLuvHawkeye
Summary: Lila Phillips starts having strange dreams...but are they something more? COMPLETE
1. Lila Phillips

A/N: This is a basic retelling of one of my favorite Twilight Zone episodes. I own nothing.  
  
Lila Phillips was not weak. She had worked her way through a dysfunctional family and years of abuse until she had reached the top. Lila Phillips, television star! Lila Phillips, movie star! Lila Phillips, world-renowned rock and roll singer! Possibly, Lila Phillips was the best known name as of the year 1955.  
  
That was why she had been surprised when a little tumble had broken her wrist. She had gone to the hospital, but now she was having strange dizzy fits and temporary insanity.  
  
That was why the doctor had prescribed she stay at least a few more days for basic observation. Her agent, Mark Chu was not happy at all. She had been scheduled to go to Miami, FL for a concert and an autograph signing. This was going to set them back considerably.  
  
Lila sighed and settled back into bed for another uncomfortable night's sleep.  
  
~  
  
Lila dreamed. And as she dreamed, she frowned as she tossed and turned. Here's a glimpse inside her dream:  
  
Lila opened her eyes and frowned. The clock was ticking so loudly. She was thirsty from that medicine the doctor had given her.  
  
Lila reached for her water glass, but knocked it over, and the glass shattered loudly. And suddenly, the ticking stopped.  
  
Wondering about this strange phenomenon, Lila suddenly felt compelled to go outside into the hall. Everything was dark, except for a lamp being carried by a nurse's darkened figure.  
  
The nurse walked into the elevator. Lila wasn't able to see her face, so she went down the stairs to the level the nurse had gone to.  
  
Lila reached the bottom as the nurse entered a room, and the door swung shut. Lila walked over to the room that the nurse had entered. Room 311. The morgue, Lila recalled, frowning uncertainly. Why would a nurse being going to the morgue at this time of night?  
  
Suddenly, the door swung open, and Lila was faced with the nurse's grim face. The nurse was pretty, Lila realized, almost prettier than she was, with dark brown hair and hazel eyes.  
  
Lila was prepared to apologize when the nurse whispered, "Room for one more, honey." And then the nurse laughed, a bone-chilling laugh as she reached for the star.  
  
Lila screamed, and ran up to her room.  
  
Lila awoke, screaming in terror, covered with a fine sheen of sweat. The doctor rushed in, and calmed her down. Lila told the doctor everything, and he said with a puzzled frown, "But we don't have any nurses working here at this time of night."  
  
But at Lila's insistence, he brought all the nurses in for her inspection. Lila, drained, slumped back against the pillow. "She's not here," she said, nearly in tears. "She's not here." 


	2. Room 311

Mark Chu paced up and down impatiently beside Lila's bed. Half-asleep, she watched him through slitted eyes.  
  
"Lila!" he complained, throwing his arms into the air. "What?" she whispered, brushing her arm across her face.  
  
"The public is not happy," he snapped at her. "You need to get back on the road-pronto, before you lose your popularity surge."  
  
"I can't help it!" Lila whined. "For three nights now I've been having the same dream-I'm not leaving until I receive psychiatric help, and I mean it! Money and power are not worth living in fear of the next dream that comes along. Besides, my new plane doesn't leave for two more days."  
  
Mark stared at Lila, not sure whether he should scream or...scream. She was so beautiful, he noted, looking at her face. Beautiful blonde hair tumbling around her shoulders, her emerald green eyes holding a tint of fear from the nightmares....Mark shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.  
  
Just then, Dr. Jones came into the room. Lila visibly relaxed. Being alone with Mark scared her. Mark could be violent at times, just like her father...  
  
"Hello, Ms. Phillips," he smiled pleasantly. "Good morning, Dr. Jones," Lila said, smiling a bit.  
  
"Now, you say you've been having dreams? What kind of dreams?"  
  
Bit by bit, Lila told him every excruciating detail of her nightmares, down to the exact time on the clock (3:04 A.M.) and the features of the nurse's face.  
  
The doctor seemed to think over her words, and then he said, "Well, I'd give you come medicine to help you not to dream, but it would take almost a week to get it in, so for now let's try some simple psychiatric techniques: when you think you're thirsty, don't reach for the water. Then the clock won't stop ticking."  
  
"Thank you, doctor," Lila said, and Dr. Jones nodded, smiled, and left. "Would you please leave, Mark?" Lila asked him.  
  
Too infuriated to argue, Mark merely nodded tersely and stormed out of the room.  
  
During the day, Lila read some books, conversed with some of the triage nurses, and slept.  
  
At 9 P.M., the curfew, Lila uneasily leaned back and slowly went to sleep.  
  
~  
  
Lila woke up in her dream, and looked at the clock. 3:04 A.M. She gulped nervously, and continued to lie in her bed. The clock ticked louder until it nearly broke her eardrums.  
  
But she didn't reach for the cup. However, when she reached over her head to fluff up the pillows, her hand accidentally hit the water glass-and it fell onto the floor where it broke.  
  
The ticking stopped. "Oh, no!" Lila whispered in horror. She heard the creak of the floorboards in the hall, and Lila got out of bed, completely against her will, to see who it was.  
  
The silhouette of the nurse entered the elevator and the doors closed. Lila, shivering, followed the elevator down to the ground floor.  
  
The nurse entered Room 311-the morgue. Lila stopped in front of the door, and waited for the nurse to open them as usual.  
  
But this time, something different happened. The nurse opened the door, and Lila jumped, her eyes widened with terror.  
  
The nurse said softly, "Room 311, your stop." Lila gasped, trying to catch her breath and to slow her heart-rate. Then the nurse smiled coldly and said, "Room for one more, honey."  
  
Lila screamed, and fled back to her room.  
  
~  
  
Lila once more woke screaming in terror, thrashing in her sheets, trying to get untangled. Two nurses and the night doctor rushed in, and disentangled her, trying to hold her down until she came to her senses.  
  
This time, Lila could only babble on uncomprehensively, "Room 311, Room 311...the morgue! The morgue!"  
  
The doctor finally calmed her down, and gave her a sedative.  
  
As he slowly walked outside, he frowned, thinking. "Anything wrong, doctor?" one of the nurses asked him.  
  
"Yes," he said slowly. "It's true that Room 311 is the morgue-but none of our patients no that. How could she, since she's never been there?" 


	3. Room for One More, Honey

"Ms. Phillips, please be reasonable," Dr. Jones said, clearly distressed as he paced up and down beside her bed.  
  
Lila leaned down and grabbed another shirt to put in her suitcase, ignoring him.  
  
"Ms. Phillips, please!" the doctor implored her. "You aren't ready to leave observation yet! These dreams could be serious! What if you aren't mentally stable? What if I get sued? What if-"  
  
"Stop with the 'what ifs'," Lila said sharply. "I told Mark I would leave on the 3:15 plane and I will."  
  
"Ordinarily I wouldn't object," Dr. Jones argued eloquently, "but it will take off at 3:15 A.M., not P.M., and anything could happen to you at night! And not only that, but the dreams-"  
  
"I will be fine, doctor," Lila said briskly, snapping her suitcase closed. "Thank you for your concern, but I can take care of myself. I have for the past twenty seven years."  
  
She straightened, smoothed her dress, and shook the doctor's hand. "It has been a pleasure, doctor."  
  
And she exited the room, leaving the doctor standing staring after her, his jaw open in disbelief.  
  
~  
  
Lila yawned tiredly and turned a page in the book. 2:59 A.M. Almost 3:00 A.M. now. Lila chuckled to herself. She wouldn't let a few silly dreams get in the way of her blossoming career. Not at all! That's all they were: dreams, no more.  
  
3:01 A.M. Lila closed the book, stuck it in her bag, and went to get her ticket for the plane. She waited in line for a moment, and then received her ticket.  
  
"All right, flight 311, enjoy your trip," the man behind the desk said cheerfully.  
  
Lila froze, feeling her instincts quiver. "What...what did you say?" she whispered, her voice suddenly raspy and hoarse.  
  
The man smiled uncertainly. "Flight 311. Is there a problem?"  
  
"No, no problem." Lila turned and walked slowly to the window. It was only a coincidence, surely. Suddenly she gasped and whirled around to face the clock. It was 3:04 A.M., just like in her dream.  
  
All of the other sounds were blocked out now by the ticking of the clock. Lila smiled nervously but victoriously. "There's no water glass," she comforted herself. "There's no water glass."  
  
But as she turned to head out to the runway, she bumped into a vase, which shattered on the floor. The ticking stopped. "Oh, no!" Lila whispered, sweat covering her brow.  
  
Almost too fearful to go to the plane, but driven on by curiosity, just like in her dream, Lila walked down the runway. The nurse was nowhere to be found.  
  
Lila, now reduced to a shivering and tearful girl, climbed slowly up the steps and handed her ticket to the flight attendant without really looking at her.  
  
But when she did, she gasped. The flight attendant had brown hair and hazel eyes, and was almost prettier than Lila herself. It was the nurse from her dream!  
  
The flight attendant smiled and said coldly, "Room for one more, honey."  
  
Lila screamed and ran down the steps, down the runway, and back to the lobby where she collapsed on a chair before the window, quivering, shaking, and sobbing uncontrollably. She watched the plane take off.  
  
At 3:16 A.M., the plane burst into flames as it took off. No survivors were found.  
  
Lila never discovered why she had had the dreams, but she was forever wary and grateful to the fates that had sent them to her.  
  
She had to receive psychological treatment for her mental instability after her encounter for nearly five months. Lila never regained her popularity afterwards, and was reduced to playing in grade-B movies.  
  
A/N: I had such a fun time writing this! It is my absolute favorite episode of the Twilight Zone, and I'm glad I wrote it. I hope you all enjoy it, and please read and review! 


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